To Save a Friend
by 1monster2
Summary: When a good friend of Dick's-Brianna Peters-starts dealing with some intense depression, he is right there to lend a hand. Follow along as he helps a friend along to become the awesome superhero he knows she will be!


**A/N: Hello, everybody! I'm glad to be getting back into the world of fanfiction-it's been too long!** **I'm also excited to get into this fandom-I've been a Batman fan for a while, but I haven't read any of the comics, so it's fun to write something based solely off of my knowledge from the movies and fanfiction! That being said, I** _ **do**_ **only know the characters from the Christopher Nolan movies and from other people's fanfictions, so I apologize if anyone is seriously is OOC! Also, for people who know me and my writing well, this fanfic is going to be a bit of a departure from my normal writing style, as in order to portray Jason right, I** _ **will**_ **need to have him swear from time to time, thus this fic's M rating. Also, one of the main characters in this fic (my OC) is Wonder Woman's apprentice. I think Wonder Woman already has an apprentice (IDK for sure), but I couldn't think of another Justice League member, so…please excuse my poor knowledge of the comics!**

 **DISCLAIMER I DON'T OWN BATMAN AND NEVER WILL I JUST LOVE IT AND ESPECIALLY DICK GRAYSON! (he's the bestest! 3 )**

 **Please enjoy "** _ **To Save a Friend**_ **" Chapter 1!**

Dick stretched out in the Bat Computer's chair, wincing as he stretched his bruised tailbone. He had landed wrong on patrol the night before and needed another night of rest to get it back to normal.

Or, more accurately, normal _ish_.

He was just about to pack up and head to bed when he heard the sound of an incoming communication from the Watchtower. He flipped a few switches on the board, and an image of Wonder Woman appeared on the nearest screen. "Hey, Di—what can I do for you?"

"Hello, Dick," Diana said, "I was hoping to ask you for a small favor. I know you are good friends with my apprentice, Brianna-"

"Oh yeah, I love Bri!" Dick's eyes suddenly narrowed. "What's up with her?" Diana sighed. "She's gone missing." Dick immediately began to ask questions, but Diana held up a hand to stop him. "Let me explain. We had arrived back from patrol on Tuesday night, and I told her that I was planning to promote her on Saturday in front of the Justice League. That was three days ago…and now I can't find her."

"Did she say anything after you said that?"

"She just said 'Oh', and didn't really say anything after that." Diana exhaled, her hand unconsciously trailing down to grip her whip. "I've heard rumors that she's got a safe house somewhere when she doesn't want to be here, but I have no idea where it might be. I was hoping that you and your brother Tim could try and track her down." Dick nodded, shifting a little as his back protested. "No problem, Diana. Tim and I would be happy to see Brianna again."

Diana sighed in relief. "Thank you, Dick—just let me know when you've found her. Wonder Woman out." And with that, Diana vanished from the screen. Dick sighed, leaning back in his chair. He had met Brianna back when they were in the same class in elementary school, and they had remained friends since then. Ironically, they were opposites in pretty much everything—Dick was an extrovert and Brianna was a _very_ strong introvert, Dick was high energy and Brianna was very low energy, Dick was very popular and Brianna was _not_ —but they had grown to be close. Dick had actually been the one to encourage her back when she had started as Wonder Woman's sidekick, back when she was still nervous talking to the Amazonian. Brianna had met all four Robins during the last few years—she was still shy around Jason (but getting better) and was still scared of Damian—and Tim was her favorite of Dick's brothers, since they were the most alike.

If Brianna had gone missing, Tim would want to help find her.

"Hey, Tim! Wanna help me track someone?"

 ***B*R*I*A*N*N*A*'S* *A*P*A*R*T*M*E*N*T***

Dick quietly opened the door, almost immediately wincing at how cold the apartment was. Brianna didn't like being very cold, so Dick wasn't sure why her place was that-

Oh. _That_ was why.

Dick slowly made his way to the small couch in the center of the room and rested a hand on top of a pile of blankets. "Bri? You alive in there?" A groan emerged from the blankets, and a pair of dark gray eyes glanced up at him. "…Dick? What are you doing here?"

"Di's concerned about you, and she asked Timmy and I to find you." Brianna glanced down, her eyes slipping closed again. Dick sighed, reaching out and running a hand through her hair. "What happened, Bri? Why did you run off like that…and why didn't you tell us where this apartment was?" Brianna sighed, slowly reaching out and weakly grabbing Dick's other hand. "You'll…think it's stupid."

"No I won't, Bri, you know me better than that. Nothing you can say to me is stupid." Brianna squeezed his hand, taking a few minutes to collect her thoughts before whispering, "I don't…want to be…on my own."

"Really?" Dick moved closer, until he was reclining against the back of the couch and propping her head in his lap. "Isn't that what all of us want, though? To be able to be our own superhero?"

Brianna shuddered slightly, shaking her head. "Not…not me. Or, I guess, not the way Di…Wonder Woman wants me to." She bit her lip, and Dick's hand briefly stilled in her hair. "Diana told us what happened," he began cautiously. "Was that not the full story?" Brianna shrugged. "Well, I'm not sure what she told you, but…we had just gotten back from a major mission taking care of some serial bank robbers, and D…Diana had started to try and decide what case she was going to take on next. We were getting cleaned up and about to head back up to the main house when she said, completely out of the blue, 'By the way, on Saturday, we're heading up to the Watchtower and introducing you as an official solitary hero' or something like that. She then kept going about how I would get to create my own identity and costume and find my own city and…" Brianna let out a ragged breath, curling a little closer into Dick. "She was so excited about me getting to 'make my own way' in the superhero world…that she didn't notice how terrified I was. And still am."

Dick's hand curled tighter around hers. "Why are you terrified of it?" Brianna risked a look at his face, but he just looked curious and concerned, instead of whatever else she thought she might see. She took a deep breath, glancing back down at the ground. "Because…because it means that I'll be alone. You know me, Dick-I'm super shy, and don't talk to a lot of people-"

"You talked to me when we were kids."

"Yes, because you wouldn't leave me alone. I got so used to having you asking me to play tetherball or something that it felt wrong without you there. I made…maybe one or two friends on my own that weren't because of you. From what Diana was saying, I have to find my new 'home city' and a job _and_ create a good relationship with the police on my own…which is really hard when I can barely get through a conversation with anyone who isn't you or one of my other friends without sounding like English is my fourth language…and when I don't want to leave home." A warm thumb began to run across the back of her hand. "Plus I'm supposed to come up with my own superhero identity and costume and everything on my own, and I'm _terrible_ at that sort of thing." Brianna sighed. "I just…I wish she could have let me know a long time ago, so that we could have worked on it together…plus…I just don't want things to change." A few tears began to fall, and she closed her eyes as she tried to roll away from Dick. He grabbed her shoulders, however, holding her in place.

"Well, I don't know if this will make you feel any better, Bri, but I know you're _more_ than ready to strike out on your own. Plus, you won't actually be alone-Wally, Tim, and I will always be there for you, and I know that the others will do the same." He sighed, glancing down at her. "I agree, though—Diana could have gone about this with a _lot_ more concern for you and your feelings." His hand drifted down to cup the back of her neck. "You've made yourself sick, haven't you?"

"No…"

"Bri, I know you. I _know_ that when your depression gets bad, you don't start to relax unless you can curl up in your blankets and hide away from everyone for a while. I _also_ know that you shouldn't have to see Diana right now."

"Dick...what are you-" Dick placed a finger over her lips to stop her before pulling out his phone and calling a number. "Hey, Jay-can you come pick Bri and I up? She's gonna come out to the manor for a little while. Yup…yeah, I took the roofs, but she's not in a state to do that right now." He nodded, listening for a few seconds before nodding again. "All right, we'll be ready." He hung up his phone before turning to Brianna. "All right-let's get you ready to go."

 _ **A/N 2: Welp…sorry this is so short…I finished this at 3:15am, so I decided to end it relatively early. I should have a longer chapter next time! 3 I'm hoping to get the next one out soon, but it depends on my schedule, cause school/homework/work/writing books…why do I do this to myself? :'( I'll let y'all know when it's up, though!**_

 _ **It's almost 3:20am out here, so I should probably log off for now…I'll be back soon! I'm currently reading a ton of B-Man fanfics, so I should *fingers crossed* get better at characterizations over time!**_

 _ **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you all soon!**_

 _ **God bless,**_

 _ **1monster2**_


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